briar14

Macbest, thank you for your posts. We loved Suzanne on our Sept/Oct Splendor cruises. A Regent treasure!

27 minutes ago, Joywrk said:

We are also Crystal refugees. I have to say I am completely frustrated trying to book excursions. I keep getting bumped out of the site. Have spent hours. I hope the cruise is better than this experience

Call Regent with your excursion choices and an agent will reserve them for you. Many times this is the most expedient method. 

The Splendor suite on Splendor has a sofa bed in the living area. There is a separate bedroom, so no impact on living space. We have not had a sofa bed in a standard suite.

21 minutes ago, briar14 said:

I love your “setting the table”. We enjoyed Splendor in Sept/Oct and Mariner in Dec/Jan. I know how exciting it is to board a Regent  ship after 1+ years. Coming home. Wishing  you a happy healthy cruise!

1 hour ago, forgap said:

Fran described our boarding very well so I won't repeat.  I think all together it took about  two hours from drop off to lunch in La Veranda.   My father would have described it as the stations of the cross as you went from one venue to the next...gold sticker here, red wrist band there.  The longest process was the actual Regent check in as you had to hand over our documents for Columbia and write down our vaccination details.  (yes, it appears as if we are doing more than a technical stop there)

 

The ship itself is very elegant.  We are in a concierge suite.  The difference that I can discern from the other Regent ships is that the rooms are wider but shorter so, for me, they seem a bit smaller even though I know they are not in terms of square footage.  The deck is huge, though.   

 

We are going to Pacific Rim tonight.  It was very easy to get an extra reservation as the ship does not seem full at all.  

 

Such a relief to be on board!
 

 

Mariner, 823, F, Briar14, 1/22, Starboard, Fwd, 252/49, 1 bathroom, Walk-in shower, No noise, yes, Good location on a quiet passageway, near stairs and main elevators, spa and fitness center are nearby on Deck 7.

SuiteGuru is very helpful. Thanks for doing this, Bill!

31 minutes ago, DatawCruiser said:

We are on the 2/3 Splendor sailing also.  We decided to cancel our flights and make the 9 hour drive to the port over 2 days to eliminate any airport or airline factors from the equation.  A little extreme?  Maybe,  But we are erring on the side of caution also, to minimize any chance of the dreaded quarantine.

Did the same thing before our December 18 Mariner cruise. Have a great trip. Splendor is splendiforous!

3 hours ago, Pcardad said:

Shouldn't be hard to verify if they tested tested everyone who was onboard - some of them must be here. I am not aware of mass testing of Americans on any Regent ship though...

Yes, everyone was tested Tuesday morning. We were also tested on Sunday, if you wanted to leave the ship for tours, sightseeing.

6 minutes ago, UUNetBill said:

Within reason, I agree...but the other reviews I've read recently lead me to believe that 'subpar' is relative - my biggest potential complaint is the damn masks - I hate 'em - but if that's all I need to do to enjoy a week of being overfed, overindulged, and possibly a bit over-inebriated, well, so be it.

Bill, fellow Greenvillian here. We are on the Mariner, now calling it the nonstop cruise. I think the primary reason for taking this cruise for many guests was the Panama Canal transit. It was excellent with good narration. Within the Covid parameters, games are played, Trivia teams are winning and losing, shows are produced, lots of lectures given, and good food and drink are being served. We had a wonderful wine pairing lunch today, just like we have experienced on other Regent cruises. The wonderful Regent crew is cheerful, providing good service, when I am sure they are concerned about the future. No, it is not the experience I anticipated, but we are having a good time, meeting lots of good people and . . . doing well at Trivia! Happy New Year and enjoy your cruise.

Definitely Regent for the reasons others have mentioned. But, if you want to put “boots on the ground” in Antarctica take an expedition cruise. We used Silver Sea in early 2020, South Georgia Island and Antarctica. It was fabulous. We lucked out with the weather, ocean conditions, and superb expedition staff. National Geographic, Seaborne, and Ponant also do expedition cruising.

We are! Just a few more days. 

Thank you for the recommendations! Very helpful. Tours were reserved by 12:15 pm EST, except Cape Verde. Wes, I look forward to reading your trip reports in February. Susan, I think you are on the December 18 Mariner cruise. See you then!

Excursions for this cruise will be available this week. Would appreciate any recommendations. We are planning a safari after the cruise and then a few more days in Cape Town. Thank you.

15 hours ago, Pcardad said:

I used to live in Morris County!

 

 

Us too, Mendham Township!

4 hours ago, Sheltieluv said:

Hope you and TB have a wonderful cruise!  Please let us know if there are any familiar faces among the crew.  I recommended Mario to you, oh my goodness it must be over 2 years ago now, and I've wondered if he returned to Regent.   

We don't cruise until next summer,  so I'll be following your reports with great interest.  Enjoy!  

3 hours ago, Zqueeze1 said:

We know Mario and love him!  He is a wonderful dude. 

Z and TB

Mario is on Splendor, been on since July. He said he would be on the Mariner for the World Cruise. We enjoyed our time with him in September and October. “Super Mario!”

41 minutes ago, pingpong1 said:

Briar - That looks delightful!  Was this advertised prior to the cruise and did this have to be booked prior to the cruise, or was it announced/booked after you got onboard?

It was announced after we were on board. If you are interested, check with Reception so you will be notified if either a champagne or wine luncheon is planned.

Champagne Experience, Splendor, September 2021. Georgiana, Head Sommelier, presented this delightful, relaxed, luncheon to 23 passengers. 

7 minutes ago, UUNetBill said:

One year on my wife's birthday, we got escorted down to Prime 7 by our butler, everyone wished her a happy birthday, the GM stopped by our table and sang Happy Birthday to her, and they had a special dessert for her.

 

This was in addition to the balloons and banner in our cabin and the announcement on the CCTV system.  All in all a nice, special day for her.

This was exactly my experience on Splendor last week, loved it. Only difference we ate  in Pacific Rim. 

6 hours ago, UUNetBill said:

@briar14 Thanks, neighbor!  LOL!  Got your updates in, thanks for taking the time to post!!  Hope you had a great cruise, we're not on board Splendor until January...

You will love your experience!

11 hours ago, NORTOM said:

Was Bridge or other card games allowed?

Yes, “Informal Bridge Play”, offered on sea days in Observation Lounge. Card Room was closed.

15 hours ago, briar14 said:

Bill, information on 2 suites on Splendor, September 11-October 6.
 

Splendor, 821, PHB, sigh14, September 2021, Starboard, Fwd, 1 bath, shower, intermittent banging noise, which was unlatched pocket doors in unoccupied suites, yes, would recommend, very convenient location, larger balcony, new 2-door closet configuration works better than PH’s on Explorer. Excellent shower.

Because of noise issue, we were moved to—Splendor, 1009, Splendor Suite, sigh14, September 2021, Starboard, Fwd, 1 1/2 baths, shower, no noise issues, yes, would recommend, comments: terrible closet (small, not enough room for hanging pants and dresses), shower not as good as in PH. Larger balcony. This suite is under the Culinary Kitchen, no noise issues.

 

 

 

Forgot to include that the Splendor suite, 1009, has a walk-in shower and a jetted tub.

Bill, information on 2 suites on Splendor, September 11-October 6.
 

Splendor, 821, PHB, sigh14, September 2021, Starboard, Fwd, 1 bath, shower, intermittent banging noise, which was unlatched pocket doors in unoccupied suites, yes, would recommend, very convenient location, larger balcony, new 2-door closet configuration works better than PH’s on Explorer. Excellent shower.

Because of noise issue, we were moved to—Splendor, 1009, Splendor Suite, sigh14, September 2021, Starboard, Fwd, 1 1/2 baths, shower, no noise issues, yes, would recommend, comments: terrible closet (small, not enough room for hanging pants and dresses), shower not as good as in PH. Larger balcony. This suite is under the Culinary Kitchen, no noise issues.

2 hours ago, ruthe17 said:

Understand from the Splendor Roll Call(London to Barcelona; September 22 - October 6) several ports were missed. According to the Roll Call, passengers were notified of 4 of these ports a week before departure and 2 others were cancelled because of weather. Can anybody shed some light on this- which ports were cancelled and why were they cancelled. Thanks.

It was four ports. St. Malo and Tangier were announced before cruise began. An extra day in Bordeaux was added and a sea day for Tangier. Biarritz and La Coruna, tender ports were the other two.

3 hours ago, Crosspost said:

We were on the Splendor from 22 September to 6 October and it was amazing. The ship is beautiful, the staff amazing and the reduced capacity did not detract at all from the enjoyment. There was dancing and karaoke and trivia and loads of people took part. We felt incredibly safe - the testing of crew and passengers gave us added comfort (the Splendor travels with its own independent testing team who are very gentle and professional)  and although mask wearing is required it is just not an issue and is second nature after the first day.  The entertainment was brilliant - everyone agreed it has gone up to another level, both with the highly talented entertainment team on board and the guest entertainers. For those who have travelled before with Regent there were lots of familiar faces- John Barron was cruise director and just brilliant, Boogie and Kasia and the Regent Signature Orchestra. Great pianist in the Observation Lounge called Andrew who did a great 'Guess that Tune' a couple of times. The head sommelier Georgiana (employee of the month and amazing) did a fantastic champagne lunch with matched champagnes to the food and we did two cookery lessons both of which started with a cocktail (bit of a theme here I know).  Yes there is more chance of countries changing requirements of entry at the last minute, including testing and sometimes stops have to be missed as a result, but given that during the dark days of the pandemic most of us thought we would never be able to get on a cruise ship again, it really is a small price to pay. We were very sad to get off and will be booking another one very quickly. I would urge anyone who knows and loves Regent to have faith that they will give you the best time ever.

I second everything you said about the cruise. We began September 11 and left Splendor on the 6th. Enjoyed ourselves tremendously. The champagne lunch was amazing, and Georgiana’s presentation was relaxed and knowledgeable. I hope Regent continues to have a successful return. We will be on Mariner, December 18.

17 hours ago, flossie009 said:

Photo of the contents:

 

Photo was taken on a Regent cruise in 2016 (Mariner PHC). I don't know whether the same amenities are still being offered.

Hand sanitiser was in the box; maybe now they would also include a face mask 😉 

 

 

All of these items were in the wooden box in our Penthouse B suite when we boarded Splendor on September 11 (still onboard). Bear was perched on top. On the bed was a sealed package containing a cloth Regent mask (sturdy and washes well) and an additional small bottle of hand sanitizer.